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Time walked – a few minutes here and there

Total distance walked – 3.85 miles (203.1 miles total)

Weather – Sunny and warm, 75 degrees F

Terrain – city streets

Through email, we knew that Yung Mi was also in Burgos and that Steve and Ann would be there on Sunday and stay an extra day on Monday. While I was upset that my feet were keeping us from staying on schedule, it was comforting to know that some of the people we started with from the first day were here, too. Because Ray insisted that I get new footwear before we continued on, I had made a hotel reservation for Sunday that I could cancel with no penalty up until Sunday afternoon.

Ray and I woke up in Burgos on Sunday morning steps away from the Burgos Cathedral. We actually slept until 8 a.m. for the first time in weeks. While I decided to catch up on some posts, Ray went back to sleep until 10 a.m. Our days of walking, then working have definitely taken their toll. The last week we not only had challenging weather, we had no wifi or lousy wifi causing us to get way behind on work. Everything we had read said that there would be good internet all along the camino, so it has been very frustrating to find out that it’s not the case. I decided this is why I couldn’t find many detailed blogs about the Camino Frances and any blogs about working from the Camino.

Our Airbnb room was luxurious and was going to be hard to leave. We were not required to check out until noon, and it looked like we would push that right up to the last minute. Fortunately the hotel I had tentatively booked was just 2 blocks away on the same street.

We showered, packed up and left a note for our host, who we never met because of a family commitment. We then walked passed the cathedral to our next accommodation. It was strange for me not sticking to the plan. I was also very afraid that after having two comfortable days that we would struggle to get started again. At this point, everyone we talked to was questioning why they were walking the Camino. It gave me some comfort to know that it wasn’t just us, but it still bothered me a great deal.

Ray continued to marvel at the scale of the cathedral as well as the workmanship. He joked that he couldn’t imagine building something so grand without Home Depot or power tools.

We left the private home at 11:59 a.m. and arrived at our hotel at 12:10 p.m. Even though we were too early for check-in, we thought we’d at least be able to get some work done with good wifi. Ray approached the counter and the desk clerk said that he had rooms available and checked us in after stamping our credential. After settling in to our room, I was ready to get something to eat. Ray had our last 17€ in his pocket so getting cash from an ATM was also a priority. I had my eye on a bar restaurant that had several outdoor tables. The restaurant was located just outside our Airbnb room and always had a full crowd of customers, meaning the food should be good. I didn’t want to walk by without eating, so I went inside to ask if they took credit cards. The server told me they did it only if the bill came to €20 or more. I assured her that would not be a problem and started ordering raciónes. I pointed at the olives, the roasted peppers, a small bacon sandwich, a small chorizo sandwich, and two pizzas, with two cokes and two café con leches. Ray walked up and pointed to meat on a stick and mushrooms. Our bill came to €22.50, and we feasted like kings.

Ray wanted to eat inside the restaurant where there were only three tables rather than outside with a dozen tables. I received an email from Ann while we ate and we made a plan to meet at their hotel at 6:30 p.m. for dinner. As we exited, I immediately spotted Yung Mi sitting with another pilgrim at an outside table. She had also stayed an extra day in Burgos, moving from across the river to an albergue near the cathedral. I told her about our dinner plans, but she had made arrangements with her albergue friends. We hugged and knew that we would meet up again on the Camino. Turning around, I recognized a woman walking up from our first night in Orisson. This was the first time I had seen Lisa since our second morning of the Camino. She had just arrived in Burgos and was ready to get settled in her accommodation. We exchanged emails so that I could let her know about dinner, and she said that she would be happy to join us and reconnect.

After our mini-reunion, we found an ATM and got cash for the next leg of the Camino. With great wifi we knew that we’d have to get back to the hotel to work. Ray sat at the desk in our room while I laid on the bed with my feet up on the high headboard to drain the fluid from my legs. We had fallen behind in our work and the hotel gave us an opportunity to catch up. Ray had several emails to send out, so I helped him by sending as many as I could to Brandon at work and for the artwork layouts.

Ray was happy that we got about four solid hours of work finished before it was time to leave for dinner. We walked to the hotel where Steve and Ann were staying and Lisa was there with Mike, Jeanette and Sue, also from Orisson. I’m not exactly sure how it all worked out before we got there, but Sue, Mike and Jeanette were also staying at that hotel and recognized Steve and Ann in the lobby. The eight of us set out to find a restaurant and enjoyed great food, but even better conversation. We sat at the table long after we had finished, telling our Camino stories and noting how wonderful it is when we bump into each other.

Wendy’s seafood dinner in Burgos

 

Ray’s dinner in Burgos

Walking back to our hotels, we continued to visit until it was time to part. Lisa and I both needed to solve shoe problems when the stores opened on Monday morning, and the rest of the group weren’t walking again until Tuesday morning. For various reasons we were all ready for a break from the Camino in Burgos. Ray and I promised to keep in touch and I requested that Ann send me her destination spreadsheet with the extensive research she had done.

Even though Ray would have been find with us staying one more day in Burgos, I was determined to get back to the Camino. As we said our good-byes on this night, i didn’t feel the sadness that I had before. At this point I knew in my heart that we would all be together again.

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